Tell of Book Larder Events and News

We're already halfway through 2013, so it's time to look back at the year so far and see which books you've picked up the most. I love this list--it really reflects the eclectic yet refined tastes of our customers. And if someone asked what the hot food trends are in Seattle right now, they'd find it in this list: vegetables, preserving, and doing "without" in the most delicious way possible. And of course they're all as delightful to read as they are to cook from. So here you are: #6-10 on our list of bestselling cookbooks of the year so far. Tune in tomorrow for the top 5!

10. The Smitten Kitchen by Deb Perelman: You can't get enough of this book! With witty writing that's characteristic of her wildly popular blog, Deb Perelman brings her simple, vegetable-forward recipes to good old-fashioned print. And we're delighted that she did.

9. Gluten-Free Girl Everyday by Shauna James Ahern and Daniel Ahern: Shauna and Danny are long-time customer favorites; their events and classes have been among our most popular. With this book, they bring us weeknight recipes that are delicious and simple, and that just happen to be gluten-free. (Order a signed copy here.)

7. Smoke and Pickles by Edward Lee. The Louisville chef and former Top Chef-testant presents a unique culinary point of view, with Southern food heavily influenced by his Korean upbringing. Try the pulled pork and the bourbon-spiked jalapeno pickles. (Order a signed copy here.)

6. Lark: Cooking Against The Grain by Johnathan Sundstrom. Finally, John Sundstrom shares the secrets of his wonderful Capitol Hill restaurant, Lark. With beautiful photographs and recipes for all of the restaurant's favorites, this is one we'll be turning to for years to come. (Order a signed copy here.)

Here are our 10 bestselling cookbooks for December 2012. Given the continued popularity of The Dahlia Bakery Cookbook, we expect most Seattle grocery stores are completely out of coconut. Your love affair with Deb Perelman and all things Ottolenghi continues. And this month we welcome local authors Nathan Myhrvold & Maxime Bilet, Jeanne Sauvage, Jess Thomson, and Lisa Dupar to the list. Enjoy!

November brought us some wonderful author events and lots of new releases. We had our biggest crowd to date when Deb Perelman, author of The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook, visited the shop and warmly greeted fans (for 4 hours!). Tom Douglas shared wine, stories and cookies with a delighted crowd later that month. And our customers' love affair with the cooking of Yotam Ottolenghi continues. Enjoy!

1. The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook by Deb Perelman (get a signed copy here.)

2. The Dahlia Bakery Cookbook: Sweetness in Seattle by Tom Douglas and Shelley Lance (get a signed copy here.)

On October 15th we hosted our first Lunch Break Cooking Class. Every Monday from 12-1, we're offering a seasonally-driven class with 2-course lunch (and a treat), featuring produce from our friends at the Neighborhood Farmer's Market Alliance. Want to get in on the class? Grab a friend, co-worker, kid, or just yourself, and sign up on our events page. Herewith, the proceedings, in photos (yes, I use Instagram):

Rachael welcomes the class. 3 students were from out of town, visiting the shop for the first time.

First Course: Romaine Salad with Warm Lentils, Pears, and Hazelnuts

Second course was a Butternut Squash and Apple Soup with Sage Croutons. The croutons were made from Columbia City Bakery Ciabatta Loaf. They were GOOD...

Students left with a Macaroon from Claire Ptak's fantastic book "Leon: Baking and Desserts." Claire has a charming bakery in London called Violet--worth a visit if you are in the city.

Here they are, the top selling books that you couldn't get enough of during Book Larder's first year. The takeaway: You like memoir, cocktails, and vegetables. A well-rounded group, methinks.

5. At The Kitchen Table by Greg Atkinson--Local chef and food writer Greg Atkinson's personal stories made us laugh, cry, and head to the kitchen to create our own memories. We celebrated the book during our first week, and have headed to it for inspiration ever since.

4. Shiro by Shiro Kashiba--Sushi legend Shiro's memoir of growing up in Japan, emigrating to Seattle, and introducing the city to the food of his homeland resonated with you, and the production value of the book made it an even greater pleasure to read.

3. The Seasonal Cocktail Companion by Maggie Savarino--cocktails are hot, and so is preserving all the lovely fruit and veg that the season has to offer. Maggie perfectly captures both of these interests with her delicious, accessible recipes for cocktails and DIY spirits, syrups, sugars, and other delights to make your home bar the tastiest on the block.

2. Bitters by Brad Thomas Parsons--Did I mention that both cocktails and preserving are hot? Brad's marvelously researched book is a fascinating read on the history of bitters, once considered a magical cure for all that ails you. It appeals to those who want to make their own bitters, and to those who want to enjoy the new wave of craft bitters in the best way possible. A thoughtful, beautifully photographed treatment of a timely topic.

1. Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi--Hardly a day has gone by when a customer hasn't asked, "Do you have 'Plenty?'" Yotam Ottolenghi's collection of his popular Guardian column offers a whole new take on vegetables. With luscious photos and flavors it's incredibly worthy of the top spot on our list.

And now we look to year #2. Each month we'll post our bestsellers, so that you can see what our customers are cooking and reading. Enjoy!

We're turning one this week, and it has me feeling nostalgic. A year ago at this time we were frantically filling shelves, mopping the floors, and making everything just so preparing to open our doors for the first time. And as we put books on shelves, I wondered which titles would be favorites? I had some in mind already, but which would really resonate with cooks? Which ones would they recommend to friends?

To answer that question, we've compiled the list of Book Larder's Top Ten Bestsellers, from the time we opened on October 12, 2011, to today. Here are the first 6-10; I'll post the top 5 tomorrow. Enjoy!

10. Grow, Cook, Eat by Willi Galloway--It's no surprise that this book made the top 10. With it's gorgeous photos by Jim Henkens, and Willi's marvelous, approachable recipes and gardening tips, it's the perfect book for Seattle's grow-your-own, farmer's market-loving cooks.

9. Momofuku Milk Bar by Christina Tosi--Critics loved this book and so did we, from the Compost Cookies to the Crack Pie. Moreish.

8. Joy The Baker Cookbook by Joy Wilson--There's a reason Joy has such a loyal following online--her recipes rock! And her quirky personality is beautifully captured in this book of sweet and savory (but mostly sweet) creations.

7. Maman's Homesick Pie by Donia Bijan--Quite possibly my favorite memoir with recipes of the past year. Donia's loving tribute to her parents, and moving story of starting life in a new place. I gave it to my mom, sister, and all my girlfriends last year--it's that kind of book.

6. Indian Slow Cooker by Anupy Singla--Our store manager Clodagh was an early champion, and the rest of our staff quickly followed suit. You've raved about the simplicity of the recipes and fantastic flavors of this book. What's better than coming home to a freshly cooked Indian meal?

Happy Spring! It is so nice to have the sun shining these past few weeks and to see all the flowers in bloom. With the warmer weather, our thoughts have turned to grilling, gardening, and cooking with all the gorgeous produce we're seeing in the farmer's markets. Happily, we've received some fabulous new titles on these topics and we'd love for you to stop by so we can share them with you.

We have some fabulous author events, cooking classes, and demonstrations planned for you this spring. Recently, Maggie Savarino, Paula Wolfert, Molly Moon Neitzel, and Shiro Kashiba visited with us, and we have many, many more fun things planned. Please be sure to check our calendar of events and join us -- we'd love to see you!

March has roared in with a whirlwind of events and classes. It's not even the middle of the month, but it has been an exciting (and tasty) one thus far. We've neglected the blog in the activity of the first part of the year, but we're offering this bit on the highlights of our events with Gail Simmons as a way of catching you up. And we promise to stay on top of this from here on out, okay?

First, can we say how thrilled we all were to host the lovely and incomparable Gail Simmons for not one, but two, events?

On February 29th, Amy Pennington, host of the new KCTS dining show "Check, Please!," interviewed Gail at a Dessert Party at the Palace Ballroom. The pastry chefs at Tom Douglas Restaurants made lovely desserts inspired by memories from their own childhoods, and Gail was especially touched by the banners hung throughout the ballroom that featured the title and artwork from each chapter of “Talking with My Mouth Full.”

The next morning Gail was in our kitchen to make a savory soufflé, share more about her unique career, and sign books. Despite the early hour, she gamely chatted with guests while simultaneously whipping up the soufflés, which came out beautifully. Some of our guests hadn’t seen the Top Chef Finale the night before, so we had to refer to the finalists as “Pat” and “Chris” in order to ensure gender neutrality and not spoil the surprise for anyone. After visiting us, Gail grabbed a sandwich from Paseo and some goodies from Dot’s Delicatessen before jetting off to LA for more events.

Well, hello there! Thank you for finding your way to our brand new blog. We’ll use this space to keep you posted on what we’ve been up to: authors we’ve welcomed to the shop, classes we’ve hosted, and other in-store happenings. We’ll also occasionally share thoughts and recipes from books we’re cooking from, and other musings on the state of our kitchen at home and in the shop. We hope you’ll get a better sense of our little slice of Fremont, and that what we’re excited about will offer some inspiration for your own culinary adventures.

We opened on October 12, 2011, and have been visited by so many wonderful authors, instructors, and of course, you, our customers! Here are a few photos to catch you up:

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Book Larder is…

From a carefully chosen selection of new and vintage cookbooks, to a full calendar of cooking classes, author signings and demos, we celebrate food & community with some of the food world’s brightest minds and palates.